my life and my loves

Menu

Post navigation

Reduce, Re-Use Recycle (yarn scraps, old jewelry and buttons

I love Pinterest! Who doesn’t? Well, probably people who don’t like Pinterest are people who actually have clean houses and organized lives. The rest of us love Pinterest. Last weekend, I stumbled on a cute little project to make a Cozy Cup Warmer. You can download complete instructions there. I thought she did a good job explaining how to do her project. I used her pattern, but added just a little bit longer strap to go above the coffee cup handle. Here’s my first attempt:

I liked this project because it used up the last scrap of yarn I had lying in my bucket and I like how the strap goes across the cozy a bit. It looks kind of cool on the cup. It really does keep the coffee in my mug warmer longer, which is always nice, and it’s a fun way to use up scraps of yarn.

What I love about crafting is that you just don’t have to be stuck with the exact same thing as the pattern says. It really doesn’t hurt to ask, “What if I did…” Sometimes things don’t work out, but when they do, it’s TONS of fun!

For example, I LOVE going to garage sales and finding treasures like old jewelry and buttons. Last summer, I found a bunch of ‘old lady’ jewelry including those beaded earrings on clips? You know what I’m talking about, right? Using them on projects like this one is just plain fun. I got kind of excited about the possibilities! I had some yarn (which I really do not like using because it takes more skill than what I have) and came up with this variation.

While I don’t think I’ll ever use that yarn again, I do like how it turned out.

I really want to encourage you to use patterns that you find on the Internet, but make them your own – especially when you are crafting with repurposed items! It’s not like there is a lot invested, and when you can come up with something new, it is a fantastic feeling. I also think it does something great to the brain as well…